Habits
by A Lost Sheep
Summary: Here was the one woman that could help him forget the pain. Yet here he was letting her walk away. Sequel to Goodbye So Many Times.


Hey, everyone! Here is a new Akito x Leila story. It is a sequel to Goodbye So Many Times which is a sequel to Tea so if you haven't read them, go do that now. Enjoy!

Warnings: Language, Slight OOC ness

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass: Akito the Exiled.

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"Here you go, sir." said the gruff voice of the bartender. He slid a glass of whiskey over to a man sitting at the bar's counter. This man was tall and slender and he sat up straight, almost as if his back couldn't bend. He was dressed in a blue uniform with a military insignia on the back. A long blue braid fell down his back.

"Thank you." The man said as he grabbed the drink. His hands shook as he started into the glass. He took a sip and the shaking began to stop. "Damn it." He mumbled under his breath. He took another sip.

"Excuse me, but do you allow smoking?" A soft voice asked. A woman sat down on the other side of the bar's counter. It was a woman with long blonde hair that cascaded down to her end of her back. She was dressed in a uniform similar to the man's uniform. She had on a blue military jacket over a crisp white shirt, a short black skirt, and tall black boots.

"Sure." The bartender replied. He grabbed an ashtray and handed it to her. "Take this, though." He then turned back to his work.

"Thanks." The woman said as she lit up her cigarette.

"You're welcome, Miss Malcal." He said.

This caught the man's attention. He looked up from his drink and across the bar. There was no mistaking who it was. "Commander?" He asked.

The woman turned to him and gasped. "Akito?" She replied shocked. She grabbed her ashtray and moved over to where he was sitting. She laid her cigarette down and hugged his neck.

He froze. It was really Leila. After eight years, he finally saw her again. He put an arm around her.

"It's so good to see you, Akito." Leila said as she sat down and resumed smoking.

"It's good to see you too, Commander." He said. He stared at her. The scars on her face were still visible from when she had been burned ten years ago. Her hair had grown back though and it was even longer now than it had been. Her violet eyes seemed to have lost their glow, though. He thought back to the Leila he had tea with, the one that looked like a goddess. Her eyes sparkled back then. He guessed that his eyes looked the same.

His thoughts were broken when Leila laughed. Akito loved to hear Leila's laugh. It was melodious and sweet. Last time he heard it was eight years ago at the celebration in Paris.

"You still call me Commander. Akito, the war's over. You can call me Leila." She said as she knocked the ashes into the tray.

"Old habits die hard." He said. He then took another sip of his drink.

"It looks like you got some new habits." Leila said as she looked at the glass.

He couldn't help but grin. "You did too." He pointed to her cigarette. "Kind of ironic, don't you think?" He was making jokes about it, but the day she got trapped was terrible. He was so worried about her that day, though he would never admit it.

She grinned too and blew smoke in his face. He coughed. She put the cigarette down, grabbed his drink, and took a sip. "This stuff is terrible. Why do you drink this?" she asked.

He looked at his shaking hand. Leila noticed it too. "Oh." She quietly said. He grabbed the drink and finished it off.

"It happens to me too. Smoking helps." She explained as she crushed the bud into the ashtray. "Everyone has to have something to numb the pain." She replied. "I just wish I didn't have to numb it alone."

Akito looked at her questioningly. "What happened?" he asked.

Leila sighed. "No one wants to be around a freak like me."

"What do you mean?" Akito asked. The bartender came over and handed him another drink.

"To start, I have horrible scars covering the right side of my body. I can't stand to hear about normal things like clothes or children. I still wear my military uniform when I go out. The nightmares never, never stop. And I'm 28, but I still cry like a three year old." She started shaking and grabbed another cigarette. She could barely light it.

Akito reached over and grabbed the lighter. "Here." He said as he lit it up.

"Thanks." She replied. After she calmed down and put out another cigarette, she said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't lay out all my problems. This really isn't the thing to talk about after meeting again."

"It's fine." Akito said. To be honest, he had thought about that stuff too. He couldn't interact with others like normal people could. It frustrated him and he felt like something was wrong with him. In fact, maybe there was something wrong with him. Maybe there always was.

He looked deep into her dull violet eyes. "No one understands what you've been through. No one can relate and they get upset with you. No one wants to help because they think something is wrong with you. No one can look past your disability or scars. No one understands who you really are" He then looked away from her. "You think no one loves you, but I-" He stopped. What the hell was he doing? Why was he spouting this out? Was it to comfort her or something more?

Leila froze and placed her hand on his. "What was that?" She asked. For a moment, he saw the light come back in her eyes.

He moved his hand and took a drink. "It was nothing." He said as he downed more of the whiskey.

"It sounded like you were going to say you loved me." She whispered.

He face burned red. "Not even close, Commander." He stated. He didn't even know where he was going with that. His mouth just spoke without his brain knowing.

It's not like he loved Leila. It's not like he had been in love with her for years. It's not like she was the woman he had pictured himself with. It's not like the only reason he didn't tell her all this was because he was scared of getting close to her and then losing her like he had lost everyone else he cared about like his family and comrades.

"Of course not." Leila mumbled. She then stood up. "I better get going. Maybe I'll see you around."

He heard the clicking of her heels as she walked away. Akito looked down at his shaking hands and the glass he was holding. For eight years, he had been drinking to keep the pain away because he had no one that understood him. Now, here was the one woman that did understand. Here was the one woman that cared. Here was the one woman that could help him forget the pain. Yet here he was letting her walk away.

"Damn it." He said as he jumped up and threw some money on the table. He then ran out the door and chased after Leila.

"Commander, wait!" He yelled. She just kept walking though. He had to get her to stop. "Leila!" He yelled. She turned around to face him, and he ran to catch up with her.

"What is it, Akito?" She asked. "What do you want?" She looked like she was upset.

He leaned close to her and whispered, "I want someone special…like you, Commander." He then pulled her close and kissed her. She tasted like cigarette smoke. He stroked the scars on her cheek and pulled her even closer.

"Still calling me 'Commander'?" She asked as they broke apart.

He grinned. "Old habits die hard, Commander."

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Thanks for reading!


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